April showers have definitely brought May flowers! Here at the East End Branch Library, the landscape is blooming and we're starting to feel a little summery (though the 90-degree days might have something to do with that, too). New neighbors are moving in up the street as VCU's Health Hub and the culinary school with J. Sargent Reynolds get ready to join us, and the Market at 25th has finally opened its doors. It's hard not to feel an extra bounce in your step as you stroll through the East End!

Here at the library, we are bustling with new programs, books, and DVDs. This month we've definitely got a bit of something for everyone: Uncle Ty-Rone will be doing a comedy ventriloquist show for kids on May 3, there's a slime party for teens on May 6 (see down below the new books for children's programming and new children's books), the Master Gardeners will answer all of your gardening questions on May 15, and Gerry Gorman will lead a free meditation class called "Reducing Anxiety through Meditation" on May 23. And if that's not literary enough for you - we have Classics You Forgot to Read meeting this month, the South Side Book and Writer's Club, and our stalwart Story Warriors! There are more details below and on our calendar, but we are bursting at the seams with opportunities to learn, be entertained, and just enjoy the month of May.

So stop in to the East End Branch today and see what's blooming at your local neighborhood library!

Program Notes

As mentioned above, we have a lot going on at the East End this month! You can find the full calendar here, but here are a few special shout outs for some of the biggest programs:

Garden was going well, but some critter got to it? Leaves suddenly spotty and dropping off? There can be so many pests and fungi, it's hard to know where to turn, so we're bringing the experts to you! On May 15 at 4:00, the Master Gardener's will be on hand to diagnose, troubleshoot, and otherwise help you tackle your garden woes!

Stressed out? In the fast paced, modern world, who isn't stressed and anxious? Even asking that question can make the heart beat faster, the breath come more quickly, and the weight of anxiety loom large in the mind. But, there is a solution: join us at 6:00pm on May 23 as Gerry Gorman teaches "Reducing Anxiety through Meditation," a free session that will focus on effective strategies and meditation techniques to help remove stress and worry. Please call (804) 646-4474 to register.

There is still room in the Classics You Forgot to Read book club! Join a fun and engaged group of like-minded readers, as we explore classics that we've either never read or read long ago. This month we are discussing Steinbeck's East of Eden, and will get next month's title. Classics You Forgot to Read meets the third Thursday of every month, and our next meeting is 6pm on May 16.

Preserve the wisdom (and flavors) of the season with the next Old School Skills class!

Cucumbers make pickles, cabbage makes sauerkraut, but what about other veggies? At this Old School Skills class, learn the answer to the age-old question: “Will It Pickle?” Abbie from Eat Smart Now will be on hand at 6pm on May 9th to demonstrate how to make refrigerator pickles, dabble in a little lactofermentation, and even send you home with a few zingy pickled treats. Come learn the basics of pickling, and start preserving the bounty of the season and enjoy the fruits of your labors year-round. Please call (804) 646-4474 to register, as class size is limited.

And if you want to delve into the briny depths of pickling and preserving before the class, here are some titles you can find at the East End Library:

A sumptuously illustrated reference for home cooks and preserving enthusiasts provides more than 100 seasonally organized recipes for options ranging from sweet preserves and savory pickles to produce and condiments, sharing related information about safety, nutrition and American preserving traditions.

Flavors are brighter, batch sizes are more flexible, and modern methods make the process safer and easier. Even beginners who never made peach jam or dill pickles in their grandmothers kitchens are eager to pick up preserving skills as a way to save money, extend the local harvest, and control the quality of preserved ingredients.

The James Beard Award-nominated author of The Vegetarian Grill outlines methods for preparing, cooking and preserving homegrown foods, from curing and canning to milling and pickling. Simultaneous.

New Books from last month

Every week we get new titles, and they usually go out the door so quickly that you may have missed some of the best ones! A selection of the latest titles can be found below.

To place a hold, click on the cover and go to our online catalog.

Kids and Teens

We've always got things for kids to do! Ranging from story times to teen programs, and everything in between, we love to see kids in our branch - so bring them by! Our story times are still a little loose while we continue the search for a new Children's Associate, but keep your eyes peeled for more activities in the months to come.

Uncle Ty-Rone and Friends:Join us for a high energy, rockin' ventriloquism show for children of all ages with puppetry, audience participation and clean comedy presented by Ty-Rone's World, May 3rd at 10:30am

Slime Party! Are you ready to get messy?! Come to our slime party. We'll be making not one, but three different kinds of slime. Come in clothes ready to get slimy. For ages 8+. No registration required! For more information, contact Jenn Deuell at 646-4740.

Story Warriors: Looking for a few great kids (ages 6-16) who would like to add their voice to our story telling group! Coached by Les Schaffer, we have presented our tales from libraries to the State Capital! Alternate Tuesdays 4:00pm -5:30pm

For College-Bound Teens! J. Sargeant Reynolds May Workshops: Tuesday, May 7-General Info. Learn about different degrees and pathways. Tuesday May 14 Admissions Workshop-Get help applying to Reynolds. Tuesday, May 21 Financial Aid Workshop. Help filling out FAFSA, and applying for grants New Children's and YA Books at the East End Branch:

Wishing for a friend who will see past her bullying behavior, Bernice is abandoned by her mother and placed in the care of an aunt who is a nun before her penchant for mischievous pranks challenges her resolve to straighten out her act and pursue a career as a Hollywood stuntwoman. A first novel. Simultaneous eBook.

The Caldecott Honor-winning creator of A Chicken Followed Me Home! presents an engagingly illustrated introduction to seed dispersal that reveals how specific seeds find places to grow with the help of the wind, insects and animals. 12,500 first printing. Simultaneous eBook

A lavishly illustrated introduction to the secret world of bees reveals their natures as industrious, social and highly productive workers whose pollinating behaviors are an essential part of the growth cycle and human food supplies, in an early reference that also explains what everyday kids can do to help declining bee populations.

"It's spring break, and Stink is faced with a difficult choice: hang out at home with his sister, Judy, or become a Shakespeare Sprite with his friend Sophie of the Elves. Hanged be! When Sophie tells Stink that there will be swordplay and cursing at Shakespeare camp, his choice is made. But wait! How now? The eager young thespian hadn't counted on Riley Rottenberger being a Sprite, too. And he positively had not counted on being the only boy! Fie upon't!"--Amazon.com

Starting her first year at St. Pommeroy's School for Gifted Children, fourteen-year-old Zanna discovers she can manipulate the basic scientific functions of the universe, such as velocity, gravity, and chemical reactions

It has been eighty years since the Axis won World War II, and America was divided between the victors: the Nazis in the East and Imperial Japan in the West; but now resistance is growing in the Eastern territories and sixteen-year-old Chinese American Ren Cabot, who has every reason to hate the Japanese who executed his mother, finds himself drawn into a resistance group and confronted with choices that could lead to freedom--or death